Game 1: American University (Friday, Nov. 13 8PM)

Roz · Unread post by **Roz** » 8 years ago

Agreed

Rhody15 · Unread post by **Rhody15** » 8 years ago

Did anyone go to the hospital to show support/see how his spirits were?

Stop! Rammer Time · Unread post by **Stop! Rammer Time** » 8 years ago

http://www.independentri.com/rhody_over ... 1cdcb.html

Great stuff as usual from Will. Particularly like this from coach Hurley re: EC

He's the greatest kid you'll ever coach. He stands for all the right things. He's got a great family. He's been a pillar of this thing here. No one can match his work ethic or dedication. He took a risk on this program a couple of years ago when he could have gone to much bigger names. He could have gone to a lot of other places. I think, collectively, that was a punch in the gut to us because he's such a well-respected, well-liked, well-loved guy. We love him like a son or a brother, and that was tough to see him in that position ...

I think the word pillar is great to describe EC's impact ...

Ramettes · Unread post by **Ramettes** » 8 years ago

If it is an ACL we still don't know if it's torn or strained. Should be a difference in recovery.

rodfromcranston · Unread post by **rodfromcranston** » 8 years ago

Well, look at the positive side of things.
Guard depth is the strength of this program.
Losing EC hurts, but Terrell, Garrett, Four and Thompson provide
a solid core of guards.
If Hassan was the one who went down, the season would be in
immediate jeopardy, because of lesser frontcourt depth.
EC was in a lot of pain. It happened at the opposite end of
the floor from where I was, so I didn't see exactly what happened.
Very sloppy game with not much flow.
Four will become an instant fan favorite if he keep up his shooting.
Very quick release.
I like Iverson. You can see the rust is there, but you can also
see a very interesting player,
Garrett is so good. Terrel is such a talent.
Hassan is Hassan.
Watson lost a lot of weight, and seems more mobile.
Fouls up front could be a problem in games.
I liked the kids. Akele and Thompson played within themselves and
didn't force anything.
Free throws were horrid. Hope it's not a precursor of
another bad free throw shooting team.
A good opening crowd with student sections packed and
making lots of noise.
Good, but costly win.
Tuesday will be an interesting test.

Billyboy78 · Unread post by **Billyboy78** » 8 years ago

http://www.cbssports.com/collegebasketb ... g-saturday

ramfan85 · Unread post by **ramfan85** » 8 years ago

RF1 wrote:All my unbridled excitement for this season disappeared when EC went down. If he is out for any length of time, it is a devastating blow. It reminded me of Tom Brady's knee injury in game 1 against the Kansas City Chiefs back in 2008.

Brady was hit. Reminded me of Wes Welker's injury. No contact knee injuries are the worst.
It's going to be a long year.

PeterRamTime · Unread post by **PeterRamTime** » 8 years ago

Even if we do make it to the dance, we'll still be like "What if?" I really hope he comes back 100% next year.

Billyboy78 · Unread post by **Billyboy78** » 8 years ago

The fact that Dan said the knee didn't swell up much could be positive news, meaning it might only be a sprain. Doesn't mean it isn't torn, but leaves some hope.

Rhody15 · Unread post by **Rhody15** » 8 years ago

It's interesting though that they're doing all the tests tomorrow. That usually means the knee is swelled up pretty good. Who knows. I expect him done for the year. Devastating. Been talking about this season the day after we lost to Stanford.

Time for everyone to step up.

860_rhody · Unread post by **860_rhody** » 8 years ago

I had probably the best view of it, and based on my instincts I am about 99% sure it was an ACL. He tried to change direction really quickly, and his knee just gave out. Hate to be the bearer of bad news, but our NCAA hopes are in jeapordy.

Unread post by **TruePoint** » 8 years ago

ramfan85 wrote:
RF1 wrote:All my unbridled excitement for this season disappeared when EC went down. If he is out for any length of time, it is a devastating blow. It reminded me of Tom Brady's knee injury in game 1 against the Kansas City Chiefs back in 2008.

Brady was hit. Reminded me of Wes Welker's injury. No contact knee injuries are the worst.
It's going to be a long year.

I think he's talking in terms of impact.

I disagree though. I am cautious about sounding like the Sunshine Band here, but last year if EC went down for the year we'd have been dead. But the addition of Four, Iverson and Thompson plus the improvement of Jared and Garvis - plus Dans leadership - make me think this isn't a season-crippling situation. I feel terrible for EC personally, and I do think this lowers our ceiling a bit, but there will be no white flag above my door. I still expect to compete for the league and for a tournament berth.

15 Year Lurker · Unread post by **15 Year Lurker** » 8 years ago

I still feel like someone hit me in the stomach with a 2x4 with the EC injury. Literally happened on a play I was snapchatting to a PC fan/friend. Hope it wasn't my fault. I've loved EC as a player since his first game here and thought he was going to be poised for a big year with that finger fixed. It hurts but I guess it's important to put it all in perspective.

They still have a very good team. Terrell and Garrett looked super confident and improved. I still think they are a tournament team if EC is out for the year. I just thought they had a chance to be a super special team with both him and Terrell with Hassan and the others. It's good to still win by 20 when you lose your best player. Thought they looked good. Garrett, Terrell, and four are still a very strong guard combo rod is right about that. Would have liked to see more for low post okay especially against American but we shall see. Not going to mention free through shooting but hope it even outs..wow

Roz · Unread post by **Roz** » 8 years ago

rodfromcranston wrote:Well, look at the positive side of things.
Guard depth is the strength of this program.
Losing EC hurts, but Terrell, Garrett, Four and Thompson provide
a solid core of guards.
If Hassan was the one who went down, the season would be in
immediate jeopardy, because of lesser frontcourt depth.
EC was in a lot of pain. It happened at the opposite end of
the floor from where I was, so I didn't see exactly what happened.
Very sloppy game with not much flow.
Four will become an instant fan favorite if he keep up his shooting.
Very quick release.
I like Iverson. You can see the rust is there, but you can also
see a very interesting player,
Garrett is so good. Terrel is such a talent.
Hassan is Hassan.
Watson lost a lot of weight, and seems more mobile.
Fouls up front could be a problem in games.
I liked the kids. Akele and Thompson played within themselves and
didn't force anything.
Free throws were horrid. Hope it's not a precursor of
another bad free throw shooting team.
A good opening crowd with student sections packed and
making lots of noise.
Good, but costly win.
Tuesday will be an interesting test.

Agreed 100%

spar · Unread post by **spar** » 8 years ago

Been back for a little while now. Trying to decompress from what just happened. To go from such a high at the start of the game to such a low with the injury is almost unfathomable. I was right in section 104 behind the visitor's bench and had a direct look at it. He went down in a hurry. The look on his face said it all. Even the reactions and expressions from the trainers said it. Man I hope it's not serious for the kid. What an absolute shame this is. For him, his family, the team, everyone. And then you have this stuff going on in Paris, my god. This is almost surreal that all of this is happening today. Thoughts and prayers go out to a lot of people tonight, that's for sure.

Amidst all of this, I will try to give my first take of seeing this team...

I'm going to get this out of the way first...FT's are atrocious. 42% is an embarrassment. It is going to be more important than ever if EC is out for an extended period that these guys learn how to knock some more down from the charity stripe. 42%!!! Ok, I digress.

Hassan -- looks great. Seems like he leaned up a little and added some muscle. Looks more comfortable in the post, still taking high % shots and has a soft touch. A beast inside as always. Guy is awesome.

JT -- definitely leaned up, looks faster, more controlled taking it to the hoop. Guy is a natural leader, lot of confidence as we saw last year. Defense was tight as usual. Shot looked decent, not too many jumpers for him. Nice to see the development with him. He's our aggressor with EC out.

JG -- love this kid. He looks even faster than last year, has such a good handle on the ball, looked smoother driving to the hoop. If his shot comes on, watch out. Really fun to watch, great defense.

Four -- he's as advertised. Kid can shoot. 2 3's to open up the second half, a few more later on. Every time he got open Brennan was pulling his hair out. You saw the experience in him...plays like he's been there before. Saw him wave off JT a few times bringing the ball up. With that being said, he still made some bad passes and got caught off his feet a few times with nowhere to go. Defense seems average, nothing special. But his shooting makes up for it. Almost forgot what it felt like to have a consistent threat on the perimeter like Jimmy used to be. It's nice.

Kuran -- seems to be about what I expected. Looks good at times with some nice passes and boards (although a few times he was losing control of the ball on the way down), but is a bit out of sync on the offense. He felt loose on his drives and was burying his shoulder too much. I'm sure some of it is rust and he'll smooth it out over time, but we're going to need some consistent contribution out of him. He hustles on D and is long, which helps a lot. He seems to talk a bunch though, which I'm not a big fan of. Hoping we see some good development in him throughout the year.

Earl -- very leaned down, definitely faster. Monster block at the end. Touch looks softer around the hoop. Played good D. FT's were really gross. Earl will be playing a bigger role this year, and he looks up to it.

Thompson -- he's a player. Seems pretty fundamental. Liked his D. Looked ok driving. Didn't see many shots from him. Played close to 20 minutes, which was good to see. Overall I like what I'm seeing for a freshman.

Akele -- thoughts are similar to Thompson. He's long like Iverson. Had a nice block towards the end, plus a nice put-back. The one jumper I recall him taking wasn't pretty, but I'll chalk it up to age and nerves. He'll contribute.

Berry -- you guys weren't kidding, he's huge! Wanted to see him get a touch around the hoop, but unfortunately didn't.

Plunkett/Tempkin -- yup, they both saw a minute at the end, was nice to see. Tempkin was throwing it down a bunch in warm-ups!

And last but not least, EC -- he looked quicker with his spin moves. A few forced drives early, but he was trying to get things going which was fine. Has such a smooth shot, which looks improved. Good D. Ah man I hope he's ok.

Students -- I was pleasantly surprised with the turnout. They were loud from the get-go and kept it up all game. Really brought some good energy into what would've otherwise been a quiet arena. Can't wait to see the place at capacity for the upcoming games, going to be great.

Let's try and keep our heads up everyone, and keep EC in our minds as he recovers from whatever has happened.

Rhody83 · Unread post by **Rhody83** » 8 years ago

I was at the game. A lot of thoughts but will try not to repeat what has already been posted.

EC was crying (viewed from position on the floor at that end of the court). He was in a lot of pain. I am guessing the tears were because he knows it is torn ACL. Great chant by students "EC Matthews" as EC was getting up.

Entering the Ryan Center tonight there where two players and a coach asking for their tickets. One of players was at least 6-10. They were directed to will call. Their seats were 1st row behind American bench. They had white warm up suits on. Does anyone know if these are 2017 URI recruits?

I don't share the doom and gloom. As mentioned Four will get a lot more minutes. I think Earl will get more minutes too. I could see Earl on the floor with Hass and Iverson against big teams (like Valpo) if they can stay out of foul trouble up front. Thompson will also get more time. What was probably going to be mainly a 7 man rotation will be a 6 man rotation with the 6 averaging 28-33 minutes. Thompson will get most of the remaining minutes and Akele with get a little.

spar · Unread post by **spar** » 8 years ago

83, I was sitting directly behind those guys and was wondering the same thing.

Running Ram · Unread post by **Running Ram** » 8 years ago

The biggest thing about the injury to E.C. is how crushed he probably feels, so I'm sending a 'chin-up' vibe his way through the ether. If he is out for a while and can keep his spirits high, E.C. could get something out of this assuming he absorbs as much of the bench/coaching nuance that goes into running a successful bb team as possible.

Not to be all silver liney here though, because by no means do I think we don't need E.C. on the floor. Sure I believe we have the guard depth to more than compete and win many/most games, but, imo, the big on court thing is, who will be our 'ice-water in the veins' guy? Down by one with 10 seconds left to Maryland, who gets the ball? I mean yeah you draw up a play and hope it looks like it does in your head, but the play usually has the 'play-maker' making the play (shot, pass, whatever,) at the very least the 'play-maker' is your decoy and/or contingency. Should be interesting...no matter, we all have to keep our spirits high, after all it is a team sport and we do have a lot of depth.

Unread post by **ATPTourFan** » 8 years ago

The CoxHub post-game story includes video of highlights and of course EC's injury.

http://www.coxhub.com/articles/uri-rams ... hews-early

RIFan · Unread post by **RIFan** » 8 years ago

The swing in emotions about the season is, almost as bad as the Stanford game in 98...Pure excitement, to despair in seconds...

Keatgsr07 · Unread post by **Keatgsr07** » 8 years ago

RIFan wrote:The swing in emotions about the season is, almost as bad as the Stanford game in 98...Pure excitement, to despair in seconds...

Completely RIFan. I still don't even believe it, hasn't settled in yet.

Mongo · Unread post by **Mongo** » 8 years ago

Just coming off a full tear injury myself and having surgery this week, I found something interesting in what Coach Hurley said. He said that EC wasn't sure if he heard a "pop". I ruptured my bicep tendon last week and I tore my ACL a few years back and there is NO QUESTION you hear that POP. It goes through your whole body. I've also strained my knee and I went down just like EC did and was in as much pain, but did not hear the POP and the swelling is nothing like a tear. I'm just speaking from experience, it may not be the worst case scenario. I'm hoping that's the case.

Billyboy78 · Unread post by **Billyboy78** » 8 years ago

ATPTourFan wrote:

Bad link, ATP.

DistrictBaller deleted the tweet which originally said that other A10 fans shouldn't gloat since losing EC hurts the entire league. -ATP

Unread post by **ATPTourFan** » 8 years ago

hrstrat57 · Unread post by **hrstrat57** » 8 years ago

Just posted 2 pics on my IG account from last night game.

Same handle. If I can take time today to relearn how to post here on the forums I'll post here later.

Running Ram · Unread post by **Running Ram** » 8 years ago

We're still going to have one of the best teams in the A10, so lets not get too deflated here, read my original comments and realize I don't think its just a bump, but it is 'next man up' time and that's why we have the talent waiting in the wings. If fans can't 'man-up' here (no gender bias intended) then how would we expect players to?

kal-65 · Unread post by **kal-65** » 8 years ago

his injury brings back memories of preston murphy getting injured early;rams were nationally ranked but had to struggle to get to the dance---lamar odom hit the final shot in the a-10 final vs.temple

RF1 · Unread post by **RF1** » 8 years ago

Rhody83 wrote:Entering the Ryan Center tonight there where two players and a coach asking for their tickets. One of players was at least 6-10. They were directed to will call. Their seats were 1st row behind American bench. They had white warm up suits on. Does anyone know if these are 2017 URI recruits?

Based on where their tickets were located, I would guess they might have been American recruits that went to school in this area. I believe that those seats are usually reserved for the visitor. Typically, that area is family and friends of the visiting team.

Smokinjimit · Unread post by **Smokinjimit** » 8 years ago

I still think we will dance this season. Other guys will have to take on a bigger role.

ramfan85 · Unread post by **ramfan85** » 8 years ago

kal-65 wrote:his injury brings back memories of preston murphy getting injured early;rams were nationally ranked but had to struggle to get to the dance---lamar odom hit the final shot in the a-10 final vs.temple

Yes. Also memories of Marc Upshaw, many years ago.

Unread post by **TruePoint** » 8 years ago

Billyboy78 wrote:
ATPTourFan wrote:
Bad link, ATP.

DistrictBaller deleted the tweet which originally said that other A10 fans shouldn't gloat since losing EC hurts the entire league. -ATP

How about they shouldn't gloat because what kind of sick piece of human garbage gloats when someone gets hurt? Especially a kid like EC, who is the type of guy anyone would root for if they knew anything about him, whether he was on their team or not.

Unread post by **ATPTourFan** » 8 years ago

CoxHub has posted the replay of the game last night. It costs $2.

http://www.coxhub.com/uri-vs-american-11/13/2015-replay

theblueram · Unread post by **theblueram** » 8 years ago

Not something I want to watch again. But thanks ATP.

Unread post by **ATPTourFan** » 8 years ago

For what it's worth, I purchased it just to try out this year's streaming technology from CoxHub.

Quality is clean HD, looks just as good as it does on my TV. Plays perfect on my Mac and on my iPhone, which means it will work great on iPads and just about any computer or modern smart phone.

I would purchase with confidence, if anyone feels they need to see the game.

Roz · Unread post by **Roz** » 8 years ago

And if you have apple tv, which I highly recommend, you can stream it, audio and all clearly through your tv.

adam914 · Unread post by **adam914** » 8 years ago

ATPTourFan wrote:For what it's worth, I purchased it just to try out this year's streaming technology from CoxHub.

Quality is clean HD, looks just as good as it does on my TV. Plays perfect on my Mac and on my iPhone, which means it will work great on iPads and just about any computer or modern smart phone.

I would purchase with confidence, if anyone feels they need to see the game.

And just to add to this, I can confirm it was excellent quality when live as well. Sometimes the replays can be better quality, but not the case here. It was great all game.

Ram1019 · Unread post by **Ram1019** » 8 years ago

It was killing me not being there last night. I can also say the cox stream was very good during my Hawaiian getaway. I also enjoyed listening to Abu Bakr and Eric Frede doing color.

SmartyBarrett · Unread post by **SmartyBarrett** » 8 years ago

ATPTourFan wrote:CoxHub has posted the replay of the game last night. It costs $2.

No charge for those that have purchased a season package.

Rhody74 · Unread post by **Rhody74** » 8 years ago

Jeff Goodman is reporting that the school announced that EC is out for the season.

Login • Register